Holidays and missed calls
I should go away on holiday more often. It never fails. I plan a week off somewhere and the phone starts ringing. This time it was a week of skiing in the Alps, not far from our home in Lyon. My life...
View ArticleHow to Predict Translator Performance
We in the translation business know that it's virtually impossible to accurately predict the performance of a translator on a given job. Even the best translators cannot be experts in all fields, and...
View ArticleSimple comme “Bonjour”
Alongside “s’il vous plaît” and “merci”, “bonjour” is one of the first words a person learns when studying French. One would think, then, that it would be among the easiest to translate. Think...
View ArticleGood Translations from Poor Originals?
It is accepted by the translator community as self-evident that the translation should accurately reflect the original, possibly in both form and content. So what happens if the translator receives a...
View ArticleGlobalization
The translation industry started feeling the effects of globalization earlier and has been affected more profoundly than most other industries, because it's much easier to outsource the translation of...
View ArticleTest Translations
Many translation clients request free translations as a precondition for a paid assignment. Is this a reasonable request? And if so, what is a reasonable size of a test translation that will give the...
View ArticleWho Pays for Technology?
Remember the good old days, when all you needed to translate was a piece of paper, pen or pencil (typewriters came later), and a couple of dictionaries? Those days are gone forever. In addition to...
View ArticleTranslator Licensing
It has been proposed that translators be subject to licensing, like lawyers, physicians, and accountants are, to be allowed to exercise their profession or at least to sign certain types of documents....
View ArticleLiability Insurance for Translators
What happens if you've made a mistake in a $100 job, your client claims your mistake cost him $100,000 and sues you for this amount? This is the nightmarish scenario that's being used to sell liability...
View ArticleThe Goalie
They say that in sports like soccer (football) and hockey offensive players may make any number of mistakes, which are immediately forgotten. One goal scored, however, brings them glory and the...
View ArticleMachine Translation
Making computers translate has been the dream and goal of computer scientists since the early days of computing. The idea of machine translation was born before word processing, spreadsheets, and...
View ArticleCertification
The American Translators Association and several other national translators' organizations test for the individual translator's ability to translate between specific languages, and they certify...
View ArticleEntering the Translation Market
A reader of the TJ Blog has recently suggested that I should post some pointers for those who are considering translation as a career. While I'm not a marketing expert, 30 years in the translation...
View ArticleSpecialist or Generalist?
Unless they come from a field other than translation, translators usually start out as generalists, i.e., they're forced to accept assignments offered to them in any field of human endeavor, from...
View ArticleProf. Camayd-Freixas and the Postville, Iowa Raid
Translators and interpreters are not supposed to take sides in a conflict where they act as facilitators of communication between the parties. But what happens if the translator or interpreter...
View ArticleTo Edit or not to Edit
All knowledgeable translation buyers and most translators agree that editing by someone other than the translator is essential to ensure the quality of a translation. However, most translators are...
View ArticleQuality
Quality seems to be the mantra of every translator. I have never met a translator who wouldn't swear that he or she produces above-average, if not perfect, quality. So where do all those poor...
View ArticleContracts
First, a disclaimer: I'm not a lawyer, and this blog should not be construed as legal advice, which can be given only by attorneys authorized to practice in the relevant jurisdiction. Contract law is...
View ArticleTranslators and the Recession
For us translators recession means not only that fewer translations are being done, but also that clients are making an extra effort to cut costs, usually at our expense. You can almost measure the...
View ArticleBrave New World of Translation
No one disputes the fact that the translation industry is undergoing fundamental changes, which are affecting what we translate, the way do it, and the compensation we receive for our work. The basic...
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